Saudi Women To Get One Third of Government
Jobs
Khaleej Times - 17 June, 2007
One third of government jobs will go to Saudi women and
additional job opportunities will also be created for them, according to Crown
Prince Sultan.
The Kingdom’s Eighth Five-Year Development Plan aims at
increasing the percentage of women in the Saudi work force from 5.4 per cent to
14.2 per cent. The plan calls for increasing the participation of Saudi women,
enlarging and strengthening the role of the family in society while preserving
its Islamic and Arab values by developing the capabilities of women and removing
the obstacles hindering their participation in the nation's development and
economic activities.
The plan envisages greater participation of women
in economic and developmental activities by implementing programmes to improve
their capabilities and removing obstacles that stand in the way of their wider
participation. Manpower development is the main focus of plan as it includes
programmes for the development of general education, training and skills and
expansion of applied sciences and technology, he added.
Custodian of the
Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz gives top priority to Saudi women’s
empowerment in accordance with Islamic rulings. This is clearly reflected in his
speeches and dialogues wherein he always stresses the important role women can
play in the nation's progress and development.
King Abdullah is always
of the opinion that issues concerning women need to be carefully examined in
order to give them all their rights defined in the Holy Quran and Holy Prophet's
Sunnah.
He is keen to remove obstacles facing Saudi women. Prince Sultan
also underlined the Kingdom’s requirement of skilled and experienced foreign
labour to carry out various development
projects.